Having agreed to maintaining, with the possibility of increasing, the number of seats for sale on certain routes, Qantas Airways (ASX: QAN) and Emirates will receive the final approval by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and other international regulators required to begin their landmark alliance.

Virgin Australia Holdings (ASX: VAH) has reported a net profit after tax of $23 million for the six months to December 2012, on revenues of $2.1 billion – less than half of the $52 million the airline reported in the previous period.

The “Flying Kangaroo”, Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) has today reported a net profit to $111 million for the six months to December 2012, close to three times more than the previous period’s $42 million.